Magic Sight

by Leia Stone

  Jack grit his teeth. “Yes, but I—”

  Brock didn’t let him finish his sentence before hooking him in the jaw with an uppercut.

  “Fuck!” I shouted as Jack flew backwards and Brock launched himself on top of him.

  I lunged forward to grab Calista, Molly hovering next to me. Police sirens cut through the silence. Shit, the human cops had been called. Soaking wet, I tugged on Calista’s cuffs and looked at Cass.

  “Call Mack. Tell him we got her and the human cops are on their way. Ask him how he wants us to transport her.”

  Cass nodded, watching the two big men grapple. Jack didn’t seem to give two shits that a naked man was straddling him. He was doing all he could to throw Brock.

  “I’m really enjoying this,” Calista purred in a slithering voice, eyes glued to Jack and Brock.

  If I tried to break them up, I’d likely get socked in the face. Instead I looked at Molly. “Bring me that vial.” I pointed to the pink vial on the floor next to my katana that had rolled away when I’d been knocked in the water.

  Molly nodded, scurrying to retrieve it. When she returned, she handed it to me.

  “You do the honors. Just throw it against the ground,” I said.

  Swallowing hard, and looking a bit nervous, she chucked it at their feet. The glass smashed and hot pink snow exploded from the ground where Molly had broken the vial, sinking the boys into two feet of frigid cold in under thirty seconds.

  Both men growled, rolling off each other. Brock glared at me, while Jack avoided my eyes.

  “You done?” I asked my man.

  His lip was split, but he otherwise looked okay. Jack, however, had gotten his ass whooped.

  “Go put some clothes on before the human cops show up and think you’re a creeper,” Molly told Brock, though I doubted anyone would ever take in all of Brock and come to that conclusion. It was far more likely that they’d think him a high-end male stripper.

  Brock glared at Molly, who gave him a quirk of an eyebrow and a smirk instead of looking cowed, and then moved to a pile of clothes.

  “Jack, wait for me in my Jeep,” I said, pinning my gaze on my ex, who was busy rubbing a sore jaw and shooting daggers at Brock’s back. His nose appeared broken and he was already sporting the beginnings of a wicked black eye.

  Kenzie limped over to him and smacked his arm to get him moving. Both bounty hunters visually confirmed Calista was still secure in my grip before leaving the pool room. Once they did, I asked Reo and Haru to wait in the car as well. I didn’t need the humans inquiring about my warriors. They picked up my katana from where it had fallen on the deck before my dunk and filed out without a word of complaint.

  Cass made his way over to me, holding out his phone. “Mack says it’s okay to have Eugene PD process and transport her.”

  Good. That made things easier.

  Detective Swanson and a group of cops filed into the room then, guns raised.

  “Evie Black.” Detective Swanson nodded, appearing relieved.

  I nodded. “Sorry about the mess, but we’ve got the siren.”

  He snapped his fingers and two of the cops came forward to retrieve Calista. She turned her head to me with a malicious grin that cut right through her pleasant-looking face, leaving the vicious sea creature on full display. “See you soon, love.”

  “Have fun on the island, bitch,” I replied with a frown.

  Detective Swanson shook his head. “We’ve classified her as a serial killer. She’ll be transported to Los Angeles and given the death penalty.”

  That wiped the grin right off Calista’s face and placed one on mine.

  Karma was a bitch.

  13 Meet the Pack

  Brock hadn’t stopped glaring at Jack until the bounty hunter had driven out of town shadowing the police department’s transport. He’d even had one of his wolves collect Jack’s car from my cabin and deliver it to the gym so as not to encourage Jack to remain in town any longer than necessary. Since Jack’s orders to follow the transport van, with Calista locked inside, had come directly from Mack—the head of the bounty-hunting agency—Jack couldn’t refuse. Though I could tell he’d wanted to, if only to spite Brock.

  Jack had been one big scowl since Brock had smashed his face. And though Jack had operated by the book in securing Calista instead of going after me, I couldn’t help but think that if the roles had been reversed, I wouldn’t have been able to allow Jack to die. I wouldn’t have taken the risk of him drowning at the bottom of a pool, no matter what the rules were. True friendship was reason to break the rules every time in my book.

  Something shifted between Jack and me after his choice. It was evident in the conflicting emotions that had scrawled across his face. When Kenzie had finally dragged him to his car, he’d appeared remorseful, though why exactly I couldn’t be sure.

  “I can’t believe you used to date that wolf,” Brock growled, not for the first time, as we sat in his bedroom. “I have no idea what you saw in him.”

  I chuckled. That wasn’t true. Anyone could take one look at Jack and see the appeal. Besides, he’d kept his inner asshole at bay long enough for me to fall in love with him. But I sure as hell wasn’t about to say that.

  “Yeah, well, he’s gone now,” I said instead. Reaching up, I pressed on the sides of my tender nose, pleased to see it was healing nicely.

  “He almost let you die!” Brock exclaimed, again not for the first time. “What the fuck was he thinking?”

  “You know what he was thinking. He was doing his job.”

  “Yeah, well, doing a job means shit if you can’t think with your head out of your ass. I can’t believe he considered letting you die!”

  The veins in Brock’s temples bulged, and I swallowed any irritation I had at the repeated discussion of the issue. Brock had feared he’d lose me, with good reason. Any number of things could’ve happened to secure my death—and that of our baby—in that pool.

  But this was the life of a bounty hunter. It’s what he’d signed up for with me, whether he liked it or not.

  I moved to his side as he pulled a fresh t-shirt over his head, allowing my eyes to skim the firm planes of his chest before he tugged down the shirt. It was a testament of how angry he was that he didn’t even react to the way my eyes hooded as I thought of taking his shirt right back off.

  “I just...” he trailed off, and I placed a hand on his arm, finally pulling his gaze toward my eyes.

  “I’m all right, Brock. It was a close one, but I’m fine now, and we can put it behind us. The siren is locked up and things are calm.” For now, at least. But I didn’t say that. It was unlikely that Brock would forget that as long as that gate to the underworld was cracked open, none of us were safe, especially not me.

  Inching closer to him, I ran my lips across his jaw. “Thanks for rescuing me,” I whispered.

  A visible shiver ran the length of his body and he groaned. Only this time it was a different kind of frustration, and the sound had my body warming up as if I hadn’t almost died just an hour before.

  He whipped around and pulled me into his arms. “I should cancel the pack dinner.” His amber eyes met mine, flickering with a burgeoning flame. “I think you and I have better things to do.”

  After the pack charged in and helped save our asses, Brock and I’d agreed that I needed to get to know them all. He’d arranged a big pack dinner tonight to introduce me.

  Tugging me flush against him, he trailed tender kisses along my hairline.

  “Mmm. As much as I’d like to see where this leads, you can’t send the wolves home. You called them here to meet me. What will they think if you cancel now?” My breath came out in short rasps as desire welled within me.

  “That my woman is so hot that I can’t think straight in her sexy presence.” His kisses traveled down my neck and swept across my collarbone.

  “Hmm. Well, in that case, then maybe we should cancel.”

  What? I was far from a saint, and Brock made a
compelling argument.

  He swept his gaze up to meet mine and grinned. “You caved pretty easily.”

  My eyes twinkled. “Well, when the reward is as good as this one...” I shrugged with a smile. Oh, I was so going to enjoy Brock. After the run-in with Calista, I was all for living life to the fullest—and that meant more sex with Brock. Lots more.

  He met the mischief in my smile with his own, and our mouths crashed together in a furious kiss. My hands tangled in his hair as his hot hands swept down to my lower back, pressing me against the sign of how strong his desire for me was.

  He slid fingers beneath the edge of my fresh crop top and then stilled completely.

  “What? What is it?” I asked, breathless already.

  Pressing his forehead against mine, he groaned and brought his fingertips, from where they were caressing the underside of my breasts, to the small of my back.

  “Brock?” I prompted as he breathed heavily, trying to compose himself.

  “It’s Ray. He says all the wolves are assembled and waiting for us.”

  Now it was my turn to groan.

  “I know, baby,” he said. “Trust me, I know.” He pressed a soft kiss to my lips, and just when I yearned for the kiss to deepen, he put a foot of space between us.

  The look in his eyes told me it was as difficult for him to separate from me as it was for me from him, probably more so. He’d refused to leave my side since the pool incident, even driving with me in my Jeep to keep me safe. It was probably only because he was still visibly shaken from saving his baby mama from the bottom of a pool.

  “We’d better go,” Brock said, “because if we don’t go right now, we’re not going at all.” His eyes held mine and I shivered at the promise in them.

  “The sooner we go, the sooner we can get back.”

  “That’s my girl,” he agreed, sending all sorts of warm fuzzies running the length of my body. He brought a hand to my belly, which barely showed signs of the life growing inside it, but I understood all he didn’t say. When he finally nodded and clasped my hand to lead me from his bedroom, my eyes were misty from the thought of all that I’d come close to losing today.

  I walked wordlessly down the hall beside him. ‘How’s Tianna doing?’ I reached out to Cass.

  The fae-witch was injured more badly than I’d realized, but by the time I’d left the cabin after changing into dry clothing, her magic had the wound under control and healing. And though I’d wanted to remain behind with my friends to make sure they were really okay after all we’d survived, they were happy to see me leave with the fuming alpha. It had been impossible to relax around him.

  ‘My girl’s doing better. She’ll need to take it easy for a few, but she’s made of tough stuff. She’s already coming up with spells to get back at the witches who did this to her,’ Cass said. I smiled at the evident affection in his disembodied voice. My bestie had long enjoyed the fae, but he’d never allowed himself to fall for one before, not really.

  Then again, Tianna was no ordinary woman.

  ‘Sorry she got hurt, Cass.’

  ‘No worries, Ev. My T’s already making eyes at me, checking out my goods. Her injury isn’t going to keep her down for long. In fact, I’m thinking I might just take her to Gran’s room and—’

  ‘Cass, no. Don’t say another word.’

  Gross.

  His chuckles traveled along our telepathic connection. ‘Hey, I can’t help it if I’m this irresistible. I was made this way.’

  ‘What about Molly? Reo and Haru? They’re still all right?’ I asked, before the conversation could digress any further.

  ‘‘Course they are. Molly’s on the couch, sandwiched between the two, giggling like a teenybopper. I think she’s dreaming of a threeso—’

  ‘Thanks for the update, Cass. Gotta go.’

  Yikes. My bestie always had sex on the mind.

  Cass’ deep laughter reached me just as Brock shot me a raised eyebrow look and pulled open the door to the deck leading off the kitchen. “You ready to meet the pack?” he asked.

  Not really, no. I was the woman who kept endangering their alpha and the pack.

  Rule number one of bounty hunting: never show your fear.

  “Of course I’m ready,” I said with a forced smile.

  He laughed and guided me through the threshold, resting a hand on the small of my back.

  The instant I was on the deck, about eighty pairs of eyes landed on me, and not all were friendly. What was the weight limit for this wraparound deck? Because I think we’d reached it.

  “Wolves…” Brock said in a firm voice that easily carried across the crowd. “Thank you for coming. I want to officially introduce you to Evie, the newest member of our pack and the mother of my unborn child.”

  Not even a whisper met his announcement. Brock had made it clear I was the mother of his child and they owed me respect for that fact alone. Even if they didn’t want to give it.

  I shifted on my feet.

  “She isn’t a werewolf, but another kind of shifter.” His voice continued to project across the open space.

  I raised my eyebrows at his purposeful vagueness. Didn’t he trust his wolves? “Please make her feel welcome.” The last bit was voiced as a command, which meant his wolves would behave no matter how they really felt about me.

  Ray and a few other wolves moved toward us.

  Brock motioned to Ray. “Evie, you’ve met Ray, my second. And this is Dane, Chad, and Goose.”

  “I’ve met Dane and Goose before, though not formally,” I said, giving the boys a wave. Brock’s eyes clouded over as he remembered he’d sent Dane—Blondie—and Goose—Ginger—to chop wood in prime view of Gran’s cabin. I hadn’t fallen for the distraction of the lumberjack hunks, but I’d distracted them plenty. I bit on the inside of my lip to keep from letting the victory of that memory appear on my face. I couldn’t take any more of Brock’s stormy moods today.

  “Nice to meet you all,” I said diplomatically. Dane and Goose trained their eyes on the wood planks of the deck while mumbling their greetings. Their sense of self-preservation was obviously intact.

  Brock guided me to the others right away, Ray the only one to walk with us. He’d clearly just remembered how I’d met Dane and Goose.

  There were so many wolves there that I registered only a few of the names, mostly the ones who made direct eye contact with me and offered me genuine smiles, and the women who trailed jealous looks down Brock’s body before giving me a catty, fake-as-shit smile. Brock didn’t seem to notice, but I sure as hell did. For once I didn’t object to him toting me around like I’d hurt myself if I stood more than five feet away from him.

  By the time the smell of food on the grill wafted into the crisp air around us, Brock and I had settled at a bench table surrounded by Ray, Sabine, and several of the more dominant wolves in his pack.

  I was happily listening to Ray’s story about how Brock had made two of his male wolves— who hadn’t shown sufficient respect to some of the females in the pack—walk through the middle of town naked, when a rush of power surged through me, making my body tense enough that Brock noticed.

  He pinned alert eyes on me as another wave rocked through me, making me flush at the intensity of it. Right away, Ray’s story was forgotten and Brock was in my personal space.

  ‘What is it?’ he asked using our telepathic link, cluing me in to the fact that he didn’t want his wolves to be aware of all that was happening with me.

  ‘I don’t kno—’ I broke off with a groan of pain that I couldn’t keep silent. Many of the nearby wolves turned to face our direction as another fierce wave of magical power ripped through me. That one was enough to make me queasy, and I had to swallow down the bile that threatened to rise up my throat.

  What the ever-loving fuck was going on?

  Brock’s entire body was tensed and ready for battle while mine struggled to contain whatever was happening. ‘You need to tell me what’s happening right now.’
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  His words were less the command of an alpha as they were the words of a concerned lover.

  I gasped as the pain abated for a few moments. ‘I really don’t know. Waves of pain. Magic. Power, I guess.’

  ‘Yours?’

  I shook my head, ignoring the many sets of eyes on me. ‘I can’t tell.’ I swallowed a big gulp of air as a wave of ... whatever it was raced through me again, leaving every nerve in my body on edge.

  Brock jumped from his seat, where he hovered behind me, searching for how to help me I assumed. ‘Can Cass help figure it out? Or Tianna?’

  I nodded absently, my mind and eyes starting to glaze over. ‘Cass?’ I whimpered.

  ‘Evie. What is it?’ he answered right away.

  ‘I don’t know. Some energy is rushing through me, and it hurts.’ I grunted, gritting my teeth at a new wave of pain.

  Couldn’t a girl get even half a day off from the shitstorm that had been my life lately? Yeah, apparently not. I grimaced. ‘It’s magic. Ask Tianna.’

  Brock was trying to pace behind me to work off his coiled energy while simultaneously not wanting to let go of his grip on my shoulders. I couldn’t bring myself to be bothered by the contradiction.

  ‘Eve,’ he warned.

  I’d have to give him a way to help me, and fast. Before Cass could answer, I gasped, the sudden realization enough to interrupt the pain. ‘It’s the gate,’ I said, attempting to broadcast to Brock and Cass at the same time, without any idea whether it could be done. ‘Something’s come through the gate. And whatever it is, it’s really bad news.’

  I had no idea where the certainty came from. Maybe it was a kitsune thing, a new power from the fourth tail I’d sprouted this morning when I’d shifted to stave off the vampire killing curse. Whatever the explanation, the fact couldn’t be denied—a monster unlike any other had just entered our world.

  And I was the only one who could stop it, that was for certain.

  I gritted my teeth against a wave of pain and shot to my feet. After sharing a single look with Brock, we set off at a run, Ray and Sabine on our heels. They might not know what set us off, but they were experienced enough to understand something was wrong.